


Are You Kidding?

by katethepinkarrow



Category: Arrow (TV 2012), DC Cinematic Universe, Supergirl, The Flash (TV 2014)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Alternate Universe - Superheroes/Superpowers, Dimension Travel, F/M, Superheroes, alternative universe
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-12-01
Updated: 2016-04-26
Packaged: 2018-05-04 08:02:03
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 4
Words: 9,447
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5326694
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/katethepinkarrow/pseuds/katethepinkarrow
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Eliza was just an average college student with a not-so-tiny obsession with her favorite TV show, Arrow. When she is transported into the Arrow-verse, she becomes part of a world and story she'd believed only existed on a screen. How will her presence change things? How will her favorite characters react to meeting their fan? Flash characters will make appearances!</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This is already posted on my FF.net account but thought I'd include it here too! Enjoy!

“NO!” I exclaimed. “What the hell are you doing?! Chase after her and tell her how much you love her you moron!”

My roommate sighed obnoxiously. “Eliza, calm down. It’s a TV show. And isn’t that a rerun? You already knew that was going to happen.”

I glared at her. “It’s not a TV show. It’s the TV show. This is Arrow. You know, my favorite and quite possibly the best show ever made. And just because I’ve seen it already doesn’t mean it hurts any less when Oliver and Felicity don’t realize how perfect they are for each other.” 

This was a common argument between us. I would freak out over the endless plot twists Arrow had to offer and Anna would complain about me being an antisocial freak. I didn’t hate her. But I didn’t love her either.

“Newsflash, just because you’re into comic book shit doesn’t mean the rest of the world is,” Anna said nasally. Picture your stereotypical bitchy sorority chick and that’s Anna in a nutshell. 

I packed up my laptop. “Fine. Then I’ll just watch it at the Lounge.” The Lounge was a café all the way across campus but the coffee and free Wi-Fi were worth the long walk. Plus, it was past six so everyone would be in the dining hall and the café would be relatively empty.

I grabbed my favorite denim jacket and put it on over my floral top. The weather surprisingly warm, as least warm for upstate New York, and with my trusty laptop tucked into my messenger bag, I made my way to the freedom of judgment-free Arrow binging.

I was almost there when I saw something. A weird red streak flew past me. Okay. Either I’ve been watching too much Flash or I’m going crazy. Just as I shook off the strange vibe I saw it again. A red streak came right at me. 

Just before it would have hit me it dodged to the left of me and started circling around me over and over again until I was surrounded by a circle of red light. I started screaming. I hoped someone could see what was happening and even if they couldn’t stop it, at least someone would know what happened to me. Not that anyone was around to care or even notice. 

The light got brighter and brighter and the wind within the circle made it hard to breathe. I dropped my bag as I gasped for air. Through my oxygen deprived haze I swear I could make out a figure of a man inside the streak. 

“Please.” I gasp. “What are you doing to me?”

The figure didn’t answer but seemed to run even faster. Spots dotted my vision as I struggled to breathe. As I blacked out I couldn’t help but wonder if this was what Barry Allen’s mother felt as she died.  
……………………………………………….  
I woke up dazed… and in an alley. “What the hell was that?” I wondered as I made my way (admittedly wobbly) onto my feet. “And what the hell am I doing here?” I couldn’t remember any gross alleys on campus so I must have traveled at least into the city surrounding it.

“I was just asking myself the same question, sweet thang.” 

I spun to see three thugs blocking the entrance into the alley, and with a wall to my back and no doors in sight, I was successfully trapped. Fantastic.

“Uhh… Hi” I said shakily, hoping it came out a lot stronger than it felt. “Sorry, am I trespassing? I get it, it’s your alley I’ll just get out of your way.” I try to inch my way past them but they weren’t having it. The one what had talked to me, most likely their leader, grabbed me by my throat and slammed me into the wall, hitting my head painfully on brick. “Um ow? Any manners for a lady?”

“Shut up, slut,” one of Lead Thug’s friends said, leering over his shoulder.   
Lead Thug punched me in the face, probably giving me a black eye. “Don’t you wanna stay with us?” he asked, smiling creepily at me. “Stay with us. We don’t bite…much.”

“No thank you,” I managed to choke out, as Lead Thug was still holding my throat pretty tightly. “Nothing against you guys, but I’d much rather go home and hide underneath some blankets for….oh…just the rest of my life.”

Lead Thug used the hold on my throat to pull me back and slam me back against the wall, even harder. Black spots started dotting my vision. I was honestly surprised I hadn’t passed out yet. “Don’t talk.”

“What’s a pretty thing like you doing out here all by your lonesome anyway?” Leering Guy said.

“Yeah,” the third added. “Don’t you know not to come to the Glades by yourself?” Wait, Glades? As in…?

I didn’t have time to finish the thought before Lead Thug, apparently sick of the subtle threatening, reached his free hand to my hip and played with the hem of my shirt, dipping his hand underneath to touch his cold fingertips to my skin. 

I whimpered like the whiny teenage girls I'd usually scoff at. “Please, please don’t,” I whispered, trying to move my hip away. “My roommate! She’ll be looking for me. She might have even called the police!” There was no way Anna was looking for me but these guys didn’t need to know that. 

“Then she can join the action.” He reached further up my shirt. 

I couldn’t help it. I screamed as loud as I could with him gripping my throat. He let go long enough to punch me twice, first to my face then to my gut. I dropped to my knees and he kicked my stomach, knocking me to the ground. He kicked me a few more times while I was on the ground growled, “Now you’ve done it, bitch.” He straddled me and tore at my shirt, slapping me when I tried to push him off. His friends held my arms to the ground and watched on eagerly. 

I cried and closed my eyes, prepared for the inevitable but not willing to watch. I couldn’t help but think how no one even knew I was missing, so no one would be looking for me. I was about to be raped, robbed and probably killed and no one would even realize. 

As I cried and pleaded for them to stop I prayed, something I hadn’t done in a long time. I promised God that I would try harder, that I wouldn’t close myself from the world and I would make real friends if I could just survive this.

“Hey!” I heard another, strangely familiar, voice shout. My eyes flew open to see my savior…Roy Harper in his Arsenal suit. “Get the hell off of her!” I started squirming again. 

That head injury must have been worse than I thought if I’m hallucinating a red leather clad hero saving me. 

“Fuck off,” Lead Thug said, focusing on holding me down but motioning for his goons to get rid of Arsenal. “You’re outnumbered, asshole. Just move along.”

“I might be outnumbered, but I’m not alone.” Arsenal stepped aside to reveal Black Canary. 

“Black Canary? Holy shit,” I breathe. This was officially the coolest hallucination ever.

“Shut the hell up, bitch.” Tough Guy snarls, slapping me again, this time hard enough that the black spots returned and wouldn’t go away.

Through my half-conscious haze I saw Arsenal step toward me, clearly tense and angry. “I’m only going to say this one more time. Get. Off. Of. Her.”

“Fuck. Off.” Lead Thug mocked.

“I warned you.” If I’d blinked I would have missed it because in a fraction of a second Arsenal had pulled an arrow from his quiver and shot it into Lead Thug’s shoulder. Lead Thug screamed and fell off of me, clutching at his shoulder. I scrambled to get away, though it was hard to move without seeing the spots and getting nauseous. I vaguely noticed him and his friends get up and run.

“Hey, are you okay?” Roy crouched down to my level. He reached for my face, looking over my wounds. He looked concerned but also furious.

“But…you’re not real,” I mumbled, still dazed but convinced this was an elaborate dream. Maybe my brain was dealing with the trauma with a hallucination of being rescued. I was a Psychology major, I’d heard of crazier delusions.

“That head injury is pretty bad, Arsenal,” Laurel said. “We should get her to a hospital.”

“No!” I tried to sit up, only to immediately fall onto Roy when I was hit by a wave of dizziness. “Please, no hospitals.” 

“Ok, no hospitals.” Roy promised. “Where are you staying? Is there someone who can take care of you?” 

My head spun as I tried to answer but couldn’t get the words out. Despite my fight to stay awake, I was passing out for the second time that night. All I managed to get out was a whisper. “Please, Roy.” 

Then I blacked out. Again.  
………………………………………………………………………………………..

“How did you…?” Roy looked at the girl in his arms with wide eyes. Then shook his head, and went back to trying to wake her. “Hey, hey stay with me. Dammit.”

“Is she…?” Laurel couldn’t seem to get the words out. She looked around for more of Brick’s men as a distraction.

“She just unconscious.” Roy picked her up bridal style. “We’re going to have to take her to the Arrow Cave.” 

“What?” Laurel turned to him, shocked. “We can’t bring her there. We don’t even know who she is and you want to bring her to our base of operations?”

“She needs help,” Roy said simply. “We can’t take her to a hospital, we don’t know where she lives and there are medical supplies at the foundry. We can take care of her there.” Roy started walking toward Verdant. He was done arguing. He would take care of this strange girl that somehow knew his name, with or without Laurel’s blessing. The Arrow Cave would be his best option but if she, Digg and Felicity were really against it he would figure out something else.

“How do you know if we can trust her?”

Roy looked down at the girl in his arms. “I just do.”

Laurel sighed, but followed Roy grumbling “I still say we should just take her to a hospital."


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Eliza meets most of Team Arrow

I woke up in a dark place. It least it seemed dark until I realized I was blindfolded. I tried to reach for it but my hands were tied to the cold table underneath me, as were my feet. My heart raced and I could feel my breathing become heavy and uneven. All I could think of was those men in the alley and was terrified that they had returned for me. 

“Hey, hey calm down, Flowers,” a familiar voice said soothingly. I could feel his hand on my shoulder, softly rubbing small circles with his thumb. “You’re safe here.”

“Then why can’t I move?” I breathed out shakily.

“I’m sorry about that,” the voice sighed. “It was my friend’s idea. They didn’t want you to come here so the blindfold was a compromise. That way you can’t give away our location.”

“Or identities” a female voice added. “Cause that would suck.”

It was then that I recognized the voices. No fudging was that Roy and Felicity were here unless… Holy crap. I was in Starling City? The entirety of last night came flooding back, walking to the Lounge, running into those guys in the alley and being rescued by Arsenal and Black Canary. So last night wasn’t a hallucination then? Because unless the Arrow cast was into some freaky shit this was actually Starling, not the set of Starling. Although I should be freaking out at the fact that I had apparently traveled to another dimension, I couldn’t help but feel relieved. Even if these people didn’t know me, I knew them and I knew that they wouldn’t hurt me. And at least I knew where I was.

“I’m in the Arrow Cave, aren’t I?” I asked, relaxing a bit into the cold table. “Underneath Verdant?”

Roy’s hand on my shoulder froze. “How did you know that?”

“It’s kind of a long story, Roy.”

He lifted his hand off of my shoulder completely. “How do you know my name? I could’ve sworn I heard you say my name in the alley, too, but I thought I’d imagined it.”

“I told you. It’s a long story. A long story that would be much easier if I could see. And you know…move.” I knew it would take some convincing to get them to believe me but they would eventually. I knew too much for them to just let me go, but they wouldn’t hurt me either. Unless Oliver was around. Oliver wouldn’t kill me but I knew he’d come with a clever, probably unpleasant way to keep me quiet, especially to protect his team. “I know who all of you are already. Felicity Smoak, John Diggle… Laurel Lance has joined by know hasn’t she? Yeah she has, she was there in the alley in the Black Canary getup. The suit looks badass, by the way. And Oliver Queen, of course. Who could forget the Arrow?” 

It was silent for a few seconds. Then I was momentarily blinded when the blindfold was ripped off of my face. I shook it off and looked around the room, stunned. I was actually in the Arrow cave. And it was freaking awesome.

“This is so much cooler in person.”

“Who are you and how do you know us?” Digg stood next to me, looking incredibly intimidating with his arms crossed and glaring down at me. “Are you a stalker? How long have you been watching us?”

I sighed. Right to the point then. I looked behind Diggle to see Felicity in her desk chair, she seemed confused and a bit worried and Laurel next to her looking furious. Roy was sitting on the other side of me. He also looked confused but his hand was twitching on the table next to my arm, as if he wanted to reach for me but felt conflicted. I turned back to Diggle. “I’m no Carrie Cutter. That girl was insane. Like actually crazy. I’m allowed to say that, I’m a Psych major.” Digg rolled his eyes. “You’re not going to believe me at first, I barely believe it myself, but you need to know that I will never lie to you guys.” Diggle nodded for me to continue. I sighed again. “I’m from another dimension. A dimension where you guys are characters in a TV show based off of comic books. My favorite TV show, actually.”

Diggle rolled his eyes again and shook his head. “You’re insane.”

“It’s true.” I insisted. “I just spent a solid 40 hours marathoning this show to get ready for this week’s episode. I know stuff.” I narrowed my eyes at Digg. “Wait, where are we in the show’s timeline? Did I jump back a couple of episodes? Because if those were Brick’s men that attacked me then I’m ahead of you guys. Is Oliver back yet?” I looked around. “I’m assuming he’s not because he’d be here interrogating me with you.”

Everyone in the room simultaneously flinched or tensed when I mentioned Oliver. Then Felicity stood. “What do you know about Oliver?” She asked, stepping toward me. “Is he alive?”

“Of course he is. The show is called Arrow. They’re not going to kill off the main character, at least not permanently. I thought that the writers would try to milk the whole ‘we killed off our main character’ thing for a lot longer though. He comes back fairly soon. Within a few weeks.”

Felicity sighed and then smiled. I could practically feel her relief. “So he won then? He killed Ra’s al Ghul?”

“No,” I said bluntly. “He lost. Pretty gruesomely actually. But he survived and is secretly being cared for by some old friends from Hong Kong.”

Felicity’s head tilted a bit, confused. “How did you know about Hong Kong? I didn’t think Oliver told anyone else about while he was…away. And how is he alive if he didn’t win?”

“Well when you’re shish-kabobed with a sword and thrown off a cliff, people tend to assume that you’re dead. But we all know that Oliver Queen isn’t the easiest person to kill.” I tried to explain everything I could without giving too much away. I needed to prove myself, but I also didn’t want to screw up any timey-wimey stuff. I’d seen enough Doctor Who to be wary of time travel. “And I know about Hong Kong because I saw it. Or at least some of it. I saw a lot of Oliver’s time on Lian Yu too. Flashbacks are a big part of the show.”

The others were still silent and processing but Felicity jumped right back into asking me questions. “If you did travel from another dimension…how? How is that even possible?”

This I didn’t know. “I’m not sure. One minute I’m walking to a café to watch Arrow in peace and the next…” I gasped in realization. “How could I be so stupid?”

“What?” Roy asked, apparently done processing. He slowly got to his feet.

“The streak! There was a red streak that started running circles around me until I couldn’t breathe and I blacked out. I woke up in that alley you guys found me in.”

“A streak?” Digg questioned, looking pointedly at Felicity. “Maybe you should make a call to Central City.”

“It makes sense.” I insisted. “Barry can time travel and travel to different dimensions in the comic books. Or so I’ve heard. I’ve never actually read the comics but I’ve been wanting to for a while to really understand this world better but I just haven’t--”

“Flowers, you can stop now,” Roy chuckled and reached to untie my hands. “You’re almost as bad as Felicity with the rambling.”

“Hey!” Felicity and I said at the same time. We looked at each other and grinned. 

As soon as I was loose I sat up, legs crossed and I started rubbing at the red welts on my wrists. Digg must have tied them, I didn’t think Roy would have made them that tight. “And why Flowers?” I asked. “You called me that before, too.”

“Your shirt,” Roy lifted his chin toward it. “You’ve got flowers on your shirt and you passed out before you could tell us your name so it was either ‘Flowers’ or ‘That Unconscious Chick.’”

I laughed. “Well you weren’t that far off. My name’s Eliza. Eliza Rose.”

Roy held out his hand. “Nice to meet you Eliza Rose.”

I shook it. “Nice to meet you, too, Roy Harper.”

He grinned and shook his head. “It’s gonna be hard to get used to that.”

“Get used to what?”

His smile dimmed a bit. “To someone who already knows everything about me.”

I gave him a reassuring smile. “If it helps, I don’t know everything about you. Only pretty much everything after you met Thea. Your background is very mysterious.”

“Then what do you know?” Digg said behind me, making me jump. “What do you know about us?”

I shrugged. “I’m sure I don’t know everything. The show would be boring if they added details of daily life stuff. Who wants to watch a show of the Arrow reading his mail or eating dinner? Too dull. So I basically know all the highlights of your lives helping Oliver. The show began when Oliver returned from the island and each of you are introduced when you become a part of his life after that.”

“What kind of highlights?” Diggle still seemed wary of me.

“Highlights like the Undertaking, Slade Wilson’s siege of the city, anything that’s important to Oliver’s story and building his character.”

“Prove it,” Digg challenged. “Almost everything you’ve said so far could be found through research and stalking. Tell us something you could only know if you’d actually seen it on a television show.”

“Easy,” I said, swinging my legs over the side of the table. I stood up slowly, still a bit dizzy from my head wound. I stepped up to Diggle. “Your name is John Diggle, Oliver told you he was the Arrow after Deadshot, aka Floyd Lawton, shot you. He offered you a partnership and you turned him down, calling him a murderer. You only agreed later on so you could protect the city and help Oliver from losing his humanity.” Digg didn’t look impressed. “You’re the one you encouraged Oliver to ask out Felicity.” Now he looked interested. Felicity looked over, surprised. “He gave you a silver necklace he made himself for your daughter, Sara. It was made out of arrowheads because he couldn’t afford to buy something and arrows are the only thing he knows how to make. He talked about how glad he was that you were going to have a family with Lyla because he was-well, he still is, really-convinced that he couldn’t have that. You told him he could and basically told him to man up and ask out Felicity already because the only person he was fooling was himself.” I finally took a breath.   
Digg looked shocked. It was pretty funny to see him like that. I would have laughed if I wasn’t so determined to prove myself. I turned to my next target. “Laurel Lance,” I started. “When Sara died all you could think about was that stuffed shark that Sara got from the Starling Aquarium, because every time something bad happened you would find her with it and after she died you just wanted to put it in her arms. You started wearing Sara’s jacket when you needed to do something that you didn’t have the confidence to do but she did, and you donned the Black Canary identity to honor her memory and protect the city the way she can’t anymore.” I stopped, seeing the tears in her eyes. I stepped closer to her and gently put a hand on her arm. “She’d be so proud of you for what you’re doing. She was awesome…funny, brave, and sweet at times but also a total badass.” Laurel softly chuckled. “Everyone who saw the episode went nuts when she died. They were either in tears or totally pissed at the writers and were plotting all the ways to kill whoever did it to her. Everyone loved her.”  
Laurel smiled through her tears. “Thank you.”

I grinned. “You’re welcome.” I turned to the rest of the group. “Now who wants to go next?” 

“I think you’ve made your point, Flowers” Roy said, looking a bit nervous. “I definitely believe that you somehow know things about us that no one else knows, but how did this happen?”

“Good question,” Felicity chimed in. “I’ve read theories about alternate dimensions and I know you mentioned Barry, but can he really travel to different dimensions? What kind of speed would he have to reach for that to be possible?”

I shrugged and felt a little guilty that I hadn’t actually read the comics because then I’d know so much more about this stuff. “Honestly, I don’t know the logistics. It never happened on the show and I only heard it mentioned about the comics. And even then it might not have been Barry because in the comics there are a bunch of different Flashes even though there’s just one on the show. Unless you count the Reverse Flash but I really don’t count him considering he’s evil and all.” I paused and turned to Roy. “I’m rambling again, aren’t I?” He nodded. “Sorry. But the facts are that I was in a world where you guys were characters, I see a red streak that closely resembles the Flash at full speed, and now I’m here. Do you have any better ideas on how I got here?”

Felicity sighed. “Well I guess Barry’s our only lead. I’ll call S.T.A.R. Labs.”

I stepped toward Roy and whispered “While she’s calling, where’s the bathroom?”

Roy chuckled and pointed out the door. 

“Thanks.”  
…………………………………………………………………………………….

“And you’re sure you haven’t been to any alternate dimensions lately?” I heard Felicity ask as I entered the room.

“Yeah, I’m pretty sure I would have remembered that,” a different voice answered. 

I practically squealed. “Is that them?” I asked, running over to the computer where Felicity was videochatting with S.T.A.R. Labs. On the screen was Barry. Caitlin   
and Cisco were in the background, busy with something on their own devices. “Hi guys! Your show, though admittedly not as exciting as Arrow, is so much more fun.”

“You weren’t kidding,” Barry said to Felicity, at least I assumed because he was looking me over with interest. “She’s either right about everything or completely delusional.”

“Hey!” I pouted. “I thought if anyone would believe me it’d be you guys.”

Barry chuckled. “Sorry, but we’ve got to consider all of the possibilities.”

“I believe you,” Cisco said, turning toward us. “I’ve always believed in the idea of other dimensions and even if I didn’t look at these readings.” He pushed a tablet   
into Barry’s hands. “Around the time that you appeared in Starling there we massive amounts of wind and a dramatic air pressure change that hasn’t been documented since-“

“Since the night Mom died,” Barry’s eyes widened with the realization. I felt a twinge of grief.

Cisco nodded and continued with, “these measurements are almost exactly the same as they were that night. If I didn’t know any better I’d say some dimension hopping happened that night, too.”

“Energy levels are also off the charts,” Caitlin added. “I’ve never seen activity like this before. It really is fascinating.” She paused. 

“What is it Caitlin?” Felicity questioned hesitantly, as if she was afraid of the answer. 

“Nothing bad, it’s just…” Caitlin took a deep breath and blurted out. “I’m wondering what kind of physiological effect it might have had on Eliza.”

“What kind of effect?” I’d almost forgotten Roy was in the room until he spoke up and stepped closer to me. “Damage?”

“Maybe.” Caitlin answered as honestly as she could with the information in front of her. “I’d like to run some tests but it’d take hours for you to get to S.T.A.R. Labs and by then any evidence may be compromised.”

“Well how fast could Barry get here?” I prompted. “If you give him the equipment, I’m sure he and Felicity could run any necessary tests right here. And if someone came here Roy and I could show you the alley were I woke up. There might be evidence there too.”

The room was silent until Barry said, “That’s not a bad idea.” A fraction of a second later he was standing in front of the webcam in his Flash suit. “I’ll be there in twenty minutes.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Let me know what you think!


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dancing, meeting Barry, introductions and medical exams

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Eliza played by Hailee Steinfeld. Enjoy and feel free to comment or message me.  
> Tumblr is http://ohlookivebeen-impalaed.tumblr.com/  
> Come say hi!!

As we waited for Barry I practically interrogated Team Arrow. I figured out that I was just about where I thought I was in the series. We were right before episode 12—I think they were even more freaked out by me when I revealed that I’d memorized the plot of each individual episode—so Oliver would be back much sooner than I’d thought. By now he was probably trying to convince Tatsu he that he’s fine enough to come back and would be in Starling within a few days.  
“Wait so what else is real in this world? Are all comic book characters real? Or just the ones that have been modified for the screen? Cause if the Avengers are real we’re totally taking a road trip to New York.” Roy put a hand over my mouth, stopping not only my ranting but also my pacing.  
“One question at a time,” he chuckled. “Sorry but none of them are real. Not even the Avengers.” So maybe this was strictly Arrow-verse? A bit disappointing but at least it was the universe I was most familiar with.  
I pulled his hand off my face and pouted. “Dang. And I was already looking forward to meeting Steve Rodgers.” I plopped myself onto the medical table I’d been woken up on not so long ago and swung my legs beneath me. Roy sat next to me, rolling his eyes.  
“I don’t blame you,” Felicity said, spinning in her chair to reveal a dreamy look. “Captain America is definitely the hottest Avenger. No question.” I grinned, remembering all of the fanfictions I’d read pairing Felicity and Steve.  
“I don’t know,” Laurel added from a chair near Felicity’s desk. “What about Thor? Those arms? Art.”  
“Wait a minute.” I said, realizing I’d never asked about DC comics. “Are Batman and Superman real?”  
“Isn’t Superman that alien guy from a couple years ago? When Metropolis was almost destroyed?” Felicity asked. The others nodded remembering the event.  
I barely stopped myself from squealing. “What about Batman?”  
“I went to Gotham a few years ago and saw him.” Diggle admitted. “I have a family friend there that I was visiting and I happened to spot Batman stop a mugging.”  
I was practically vibrating with excitement as I actually squealed. “Ohmygod ohmygod ohmygod. This is so cool! Can we go? Let’s go to Metropolis first. No, Gotham! Ah, I can’t decide but we’re so going to see them.” Team Arrow laughed at my excitement.  
“We can’t exactly go now but maybe once Oliver is back and everything calms down a bit.” Diggle explained, making me realize what they were facing in Starling. I mean sure I knew that everything would work out well enough but getting to that point might take a while.  
“A road trip does sound pretty fun, though,” Felicity added. “We’re doing it at some point.”  
“Ok I’m changing the subject,” Roy cut in. “You said you’re a Psych major right? At what school?”  
“Some tiny school you’ve never heard of near Syracuse.” I answered with a sigh. “Never had much money but my grades got me a scholarship and my two jobs got me the rest of the money I needed to focus on school without having to work during the semester.”  
“You must be pretty smart to have gotten a scholarship,” said Roy.  
“Well, I’m no Felicity Smoak,” I laughed, grinning at Felicity. “I just work really hard. College was my chance for a fresh start and I knew the only way to get there was with a scholarship.”  
“Why psychology?” Digg asked. He generally kept his distance, still a bit wary of me but was curious enough to ask questions every once in a while.  
I shrugged. “Same reason you guys do all this,” I said gesturing to the glass cases displaying the suits. “I want to help people. The best way I knew how to do that was listen to other people’s problems and do what I could to help them through it.” I smiled faintly and looked down at my jeans, relieved to see they weren’t too gross from tonight’s adventures. “I’ve always found myself to be…empathetic. If someone I know is going through something rough I can’t just stand by. I have to do something, even if that something is just being someone to listen to or a shoulder to cry on.”  
I looked up to see the others smiling almost fondly at me. “What? Is there something on my face?” I asked self-consciously, reaching for my cheek.  
Roy pulled my hand off of my face and held it, resting both of our hands on the table between us. “No, there’s nothing on your face. It’s just really nice to meet someone so…genuine. Someone who cares.”  
I smiled at him. “Thank you,” I said quietly before releasing his hand. There was a moment of silence before Felicity finally spoke up.  
“Rapid fire time,” Felicity jumped in with an evil grin. “Favorite color?”  
“Blue,” I answered easily.  
“Favorite ice cream flavor?” Roy asked.  
“Anything with peanut butter.”  
“Favorite movie?” Laurel joined in.  
This made me pause. “Well it changes constantly but right now I’d have to say Goonies.”  
“Good choice,” Felicity commented with a nod.  
“Chunk is my spirit animal.” I explained. Roy looked confused and Diggle chuckled.  
Apparently even Dig couldn’t resist, he smiled slightly and asked, “Favorite show?”  
I rolled my eyes. “Arrow. Duh.”  
“Favorite Arrow character?” Roy asked smirking. Poor guy probably thought I’d say him.  
“Felicity,” I answered immediately.  
She looked surprised. “Really?”  
“Of course. I mean I love all you guys but Felicity is so much more relatable and well…honestly she’s more fun.” They looked a bit hurt. “Let’s be honest, you guys tend to take things way too seriously. Too much brooding. Felicity’s the comic relief on the show. Her entire purpose on the show is to make sure things aren’t too serious and that you guys smile every once in a while.”  
“It’s weird to think of ourselves in that kind of way.” Laurel said thoughtfully. “Like we have a purpose within a TV show. To keep things moving or in a certain mood.”  
“Plus,” I added. “Olicity is totally my OTP.” Roy started laughing and Dig let loose another small smile.  
“Do we really have a couple name?” Felicity shook her head, looking embarrassed.  
“OTP?” Laurel asked.  
“One true pairing.” I explained. “It’s basically your favorite ship.” She still looked confused. “Like relationship? Couples you love and really want together. Like Captain Swan or Spuffy or Snowbarry.”  
“Snowbarry?” Felicity tried to hide a smile.  
“Barry and Caitlin Snow. I personally go back and forth on them because on one hand they’d be adorable together but Barry has that cute lifelong crush on Iris and all the history between the two of them... Although she’s totally oblivious even though he’s told her-“  
“Didn’t Caitlin have that dead fiancée?” Roy interrupted.  
“Yeah, and he’s totally alive, they’ll find him soon. I love Ronnie, I really do, and as much as I want it to work out I’m not sure it will.” I stopped and tried not to grin. “Plus he’s kind of a hot head.” I burst out laughing at my own pun, while everyone else looked confused. “Sorry, I couldn’t help myself. You’ll understand in a few weeks.”  
“How well do you know Ronnie?” Felicity questioned. “He couldn’t have been on the show very long if he was considered dead for such a long time.”  
I grinned, glad that even though they had some doubts, they actually believed me about the show. “He wasn’t, but I’ve been a fan of the actor who played him for years. Loved him pretty much but since his True Jackson VP days.”  
“I remember that show!” Roy exclaimed. “It was awful.”  
“Yeah it was pretty bad,” I admitted. “He was also in a Scooby Doo movie, or maybe 2…? I don’t remember.” I saw Roy try not to laugh and turned to him. “But he’s not the only one who was cast in shows before this. You’re acting-alter-ego…actor-ego?” I shook my head and continued. “Your other self was on Teen Wolf.” Roy looked horrified. “Dig was on some cop show. Laurel was a badass demon on Supernatural. Felicity wasn’t really in anything else, this was pretty much her big break, but remind me to show you some great blackmail footage of your psycho ex Cooper.”  
“You know about Cooper?” Felicity asked hesitantly.  
“Yeah, not only the present stuff with him kidnapping you and your mom but there were also a few flashbacks to your MIT days. The whole goth thing wasn’t a great look for you.” Now Felicity looked horrified while Roy tried not to laugh at the mental image of a Goth Felicity. “But Cooper was in this really terrible musical called Spectacular! and there’s the Glee days--Oh my God.” I paused and whispered, “Sebastian Smythe.”  
“Who?”  
“Felicity!” I shouted. She jumped. “I need your computer.” She moved out of the way as I rushed over to her desk and pulled up Youtube. As I searched for the video a part of me was surprised that Felicity trusted me enough to let me touch her babies but I focused on the mission in front of me. I quickly found Glee’s version of “Glad You Came.” I waited until they’d all gathered around the computer before playing it. “You guys really need to see this.”  
“Is that Barry?” Felicity asked incredulously.  
I nodded. “Or at least the actor who plays him in my world.” We watched in silence for a few seconds until Barry’s actor-ego gave a particularly sultry look to the camera. Then we all burst out laughing.  
…………………………………………………………………………………………  
That was how Barry found us later. We watched more videos of him dancing and singing in perfect harmony with the Warblers. Roy, Laurel and Dig just sat there and laughed while Felicity and I attempted to imitate their dance moves.  
There was a rush of wind as Barry ran into the room, arms full of Caitlin’s equipment and two pizza pies. “Hey, guys. What are you laughing at?” We all just kept laughing and pointed to the computer, now playing Glee’s version of “Want You Back.” “Whaaa?” Barry’s eyes widened at the sight of his doppelganger thrusting his hips to the music. “That’s not me!” he insisted.  
“It sort of is,” I said, still giggling. “That’s the actor who plays you in my world. Didn’t you notice the resemblance?”  
“Yes, I did notice my boy band clone, thank you very much.” Barry sarcastically answered, sinking down in a chair. “You’ve been in this world an hour and I already hate you.”  
“Oh please,” I happily bounced toward him and daintily sat on the arm of his chair. “You already love me. If I can get Dig to like me within an hour, I can get you to love me in fifteen minutes.”  
“No way,” Barry looked toward Dig. “Do you really approve of her?”  
Dig looked almost annoyed but I saw a hint of amusement in his eyes. “Unfortunately.”  
………………………………………………………………………………………………………  
An hour later, Laurel had left to get some sleep since she had to be in court in a few hours, Roy and Dig were sparring, and Barry and Felicity were still poking and prodding at me, urged on by Caitlin via Skype. “Her lymph nodes were how swollen?” she asked Felicity, jotting down notes on a clipboard.  
“They weren’t swollen at all,” Felicity sighed, clearly exasperated.  
“Are you sure because there could definitely be a link between—“  
“My lymph nodes aren’t swollen, Caitlin!” I exclaimed, waving away Barry reaching to take my blood pressure for a third time. “There’s nothing wrong with me except for a possible concussion and a few bruised ribs.”  
“I’d forgotten about your ribs! You’re going to have to take off your shirt so I can see how bad the bruising is and have Felicity check for breaks.”  
“And that’s my cue to leave,” Diggle said, gathering his things. “See you guys tomorrow.”  
I looked toward Roy who had his arms crossed, clearly not willing to leave with Dig. I motioned for him to turn around and he obliged with a sigh.  
A clearly flustered Barry stammered, “I can’t leave without Caitlin’s stuff so I’ll just...turn around now.”  
“Is this really necessary?” I asked Caitlin. “I feel fine.”  
“Yes.” She stated simply. “Felicity needs to check for breaks. You could puncture a lung.”  
“I think I’d know if I’d punctured a lung,” I muttered, lifting the hem of my shirt so only my chest was covered. I heard a gasp from Felicity and looked down at my torso. The bruising was much worse than I’d thought. There were big purple splotches all over and some even darker ones near my hips that looked like handprints. “Well, shit.”  
“What?” Roy spun around, eyes widening at the sight of my bruises. I put down my shirt right away. I’d never seen Roy look so pissed. “I should have killed him,” he growled.  
I took a couple of steps toward him and put a hand on his arm. “You don’t mean that.”  
“He would have deserved it,” he defended.”  
“Maybe,” I said soothingly. “But I’m glad you didn’t.” The overtly comforting tone took me off guard a bit. I’d always thought myself to be compassionate but defending my own attacker? That was more forgiveness than I thought myself capable. I didn’t know what it was about this place--or maybe these people?—that made me so in tune with my emotions but I could feel a strange warmth coming from me. It began in my chest and intensified as a spoke, invoking a low humming sound from the back of my throat. Roy visibly relaxed about didn’t remark on the noise.  
Thankfully none of the others seemed to have noticed either. Roy just looked at me strangely, like he couldn’t believe that I’d be willing to forgive so easily. “Really?” he asked. “He attacked you. He hurt you. He would have…” He couldn’t seem to get the words out. “He would have done a lot worse if I hadn’t heard you screaming.”  
“But he didn’t,” I replied simply. “He didn’t get the chance to do more than throw a few punches because you and Laurel were there.” As I spoke I could hear the humming tone return and again, my voice seemed to calm him. Weird.  
………………………………………………………………………………….  
After Caitlin talked Felicity through checking my ribs for breaks—I may have said ‘I told you so’ when there were none—Barry suggested going back to the alley to check for strange energy spikes with a device Cisco made him bring. Roy tried to make me stay with Felicity but I refused, adamant that I could handle going back with them.  
“Are you sure?” Roy asked for the millionth time as he suited up. “No one will blame you for staying here.”  
I just rolled my eyes at him and turned to Felicity. “Is he always such a worrywart? I don’t remember him being this cautious...like ever.”  
Felicity just smiled. “He has his moments.”  
Roy rolled his eyes at us. “So you’re riding there with me right? Barry said he’d give us a head start.”  
“Only because I don’t feel like waiting in an alley for twenty minutes.” Barry said from the opposite side of the room while eating Big Belly Burger. “And I want to eat.”  
“Sure.” I said, starting toward to door.  
“Wait,” Felicity suddenly realized something. “I’d totally forgotten. If Roy and Barry are both going out in their suits and you’re not you could be recognized. I mean recognized as an associate. Not recognized as yourself because no one will know you since you’re not from…I’m going to stop now.” I wanted to laugh but I knew she was right. I wasn’t exactly hidden in my jeans and floral top.  
“No problem,” Roy reached for his signature red hoodie and handed it to me. “Wear this.”  
“Are you sure?” I asked. This felt big. Wearing freaking Arsenal’s red hoodie? Who can say they’ve done that? I could practically hear all of the fangirls’ squeals and jumping.  
“Yeah,” Roy made it seem like it wasn’t at all a big deal. Maybe off screen he gave hoodies to random girls all the time. “Just keep the hood up and no one will know who you are.”


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Bike rides, bonding, fake identities and more bonding!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Come to my tumblr and say hi!  
> http://ohlookivebeen-impalaed.tumblr.com/

“We’re riding on your motorcycle?” I exclaimed in surprise. 

Roy just looked startled at the outburst. “Is that a problem? I’m sure Felicity would let me borrow her car if you’d feel more comfortable-“

“Are you kidding? I’ve always wanted to ride one!” I eagerly swung my leg over the side of his bike and scooted as far back as I could to give him room to sit. He just stared at me incredulously. “What are you waiting for? Let’s go!” I could barely contain my excitement. I really had always wanted to learn to drive a motorcycle but there was always something preventing me from doing so. Whether it was time or money or…people. 

Roy shook his head in amusement and grinned widely at me. “I’ve never seen someone so excited to ride a bike.” I stuck my tongue out at him and his smile somehow got even wider. 

The ride was even better than I’d imagined. Roy made me wear his helmet (he teased me when I pouted about it) but with the wind whipping my exposed hair and the overwhelming feeling of freedom as I watched the bright lights of Starling fly by I’d almost forgotten about the fact that I had my arms around Roy’s torso. Almost. What was it about him anyway? I’d always had a bit of a crush on him when he was just a character on a TV show but I’d never expected this unexplainable connection I felt to him. I’d known him for a few hours and yet I felt like I could tell him anything in the world and he wouldn’t tell a soul. I could trust this guy who was practically a stranger with my life. I kind of already had.

“This is amazing!” I yelled into the wind. Roy chuckled and even if I could barely hear it I felt his hard abs shake beneath my hands. Damn. I knew he was ripped from his many shirtless scenes on Teen Wolf but seeing it didn’t come close to feeling it. 

“Just wait.” As he finished speaking he lifted the bike onto one wheel. I laughed and gripped him tighter, if only to keep from falling off. When both wheels were firmly on the ground he sped through the streets of Starling even faster. 

…………………………………………………………………………

Roy wasn’t ashamed to admit that he took the long way to the alley. Of course if anyone asked he’d use the excuse of wanting to postpone bringing Eliza to the place where she had been beaten. (Although she had been nonchalant about going back he couldn’t help but feel that being there would bring back painful memories that he wanted to protect her from.) This was all true but the main reason was the feeling of her arms wrapped around his chest and hearing her laugh…that made him want to stay on this bike with her as long as possible.

When they finally arrived, Barry was already there waiting for them. He was waving a device that looked vaguely like a metal detector across the ground. He looked up only to tease them about taking so long and continued scanning the ground with the detector thing. Roy watched as Eliza walked directly to the opposite wall. She knelt to the ground and said “Here.”

“There?” Barry questioned. “What’s there?” 

“This is where I woke up.” Roy noted that Eliza looked dazed, as if she was just now realizing what had happened. “I got up and tried to figure out where I was when those men came through there.” She gestured toward the entrance of the alley. She shivered and subconsciously burrowed herself further into the hoodie she was wearing. My hoodie. A masculine voice in him couldn’t help but notice.

Roy stepped toward her and pulled her into a much needed hug. Eliza relaxed in his arms and gripped the leather of the front of his suit to pull him closer. He could feel her shaking as she finally processed the events of that night and how lucky she was that he had heard her screams. 

“Uh guys?” Barry awkwardly interrupted. “If that’s where Liz-I mean-Eliza came through then that’s where I need to scan.” Roy chuckled, ignoring how Barry had stumbled over Eliza’s name and walked her out of Barry’s way, keeping an arm around her the whole time. Barry looked troubled by something but it couldn’t be that he’d screwed up Eliza’s name. It seemed bigger than that, like he’d been reminded of something he’d rather forget.

Before Roy remark on it Barry interrupted his train of thought. 

“Whoa.” Barry said as a buzzing noise immediately erupted form the device as it was scanned over the area where Eliza had woken up. “The energy readings here…I’ve never seen anything like it. If you did come through another dimension…” Barry shook his head, completely flustered by his lack of knowledge of the situation. “It’s the only explanation for this data.”

After a few more minutes of recording data with the various devices Cisco and Caitlin had forced on him, Barry left for Central City to give the data to Star Labs.

“My bag!” Eliza exclaimed out of nowhere. “I had been carrying it with me when I was walking on campus but must have dropped it back in my world. I thought it might have been here but it’s not.”

“It might have come here with you and someone snatched it,” Roy commented.

“Either way, I’m screwed. No phone, no wallet, no money, IDs. I’m not going to be able to do anything legally without IDs.”

Roy smirked. “I think we’ll be able to take care of that.”

…………………………………………………………………………………….

The ride back from the alley was shorter and more somber. I couldn’t believe my reaction back there, how weak I must have seemed in front of two of my heroes. I was ashamed but I was also more shocked than anything else, for many reasons. My biggest concern was the most obvious one; actual, physical proof that this was not just some crazy dream or hallucination. I had somehow traveled not just through time but through dimensions. With that came some obvious questions. How did it happen? Why’d it happen to me? How could I get back? Did I even want to go back?

My second shock of the night was my not-so-welcoming party in the alley. When we’d gone back I couldn’t help but remember those men and what they’d almost done to me. I didn’t even want to think about what could have happened if Roy and Laurel hadn’t come to my rescue. 

Which brought me to my third big shock of the night: Roy. Roy had been so great with everything…never judging me or calling me crazy, though the thought must have crossed his mind when I’d started telling stories about dimension hopping. He’d been so incredibly sweet and had taken care of me, even brought me back to his base of operations even though he had no idea how I was or if I could be trusted. And then when we’d gone back to the alley and I’d been struck by the memory and realization of how close a call it had been. I didn’t know what to think about it all.

As we came down the stairs descending into the Arrow Cave, Felicity still had STAR Labs (just Cisco and Caitlin as Barry was still on his way to Central and Harrison Wells was nowhere to be seen) webchatting on one screen and was typing computer code onto another. “You guys really need to update your system. Next time I come over I’m upgrading you. It’s just embarrassing at this point.” Felicity shook her head as she spoke to an amused and slightly ashamed Cisco. She turned when she heard us entering. “Hey guys! Find anything interesting?”

“We found out that I don’t have anything to my name here.” I grumbled. “I dropped my bag before hopping over the border so no laptop, no cellphone, and no wallet. How am I going to be able to do anything legally without a license and legal papers?”

“Well the papers I can take care of easily.” Felicity cracked her knuckles as she turned back to the screens. Then she shook out her hands. “That didn’t feel nearly as cool as it looked. Ouch.” Within a minute she pulled up blank document, ready to fill out. “Birthdate?”

“Honestly, I have no idea.” I answered. Everyone looked at me in confusion. “I was left on the doorstep of an orphanage in New York when I was three. At least they think I was three. I’ve always gone by November 19th for a birthday because that’s the day I was found.”

“That’s crazy!” Cisco exclaimed from the screen. Caitlin slapped the back of his head. “I mean you hear about that kind of thing in movies and stuff but people actually leave babies on doorsteps?”

I shrugged. “Apparently. I’ve been bouncing around from foster home to foster home since then. Never stayed anywhere more than a few months. My last home was with Ms. Logo and the only reason she let me stay there for as long as I did was because she made me pay rent as soon as I turned 18. Said if she wasn’t being paid by the state to deal with me then why should she even bother?”

“That’s terrible. Did someone at one of the homes name you Eliza?” Felicity asked.

“No,” I pulled the thin gold chain of my necklace to show Felicity my most prized possession. “This is the only thing I have from my parents.” On the necklace was a small heart shaped charm reading ‘Eliza’ in a pretty font. “Just my name. Nothing else to give me a clue to who they were.”

“Do you remember anything about them?”

“Flashes sometimes? But even then I don’t know what’s real and what I’ve imagined.” 

Caitlin shook her head. “That’s awful. I can’t imagine knowing so little about your family. Have you tried looking for them?

“All the time, but I could never find them because I never had enough information. I don’t have a last name or any even a description of either of them since no one saw who dropped me off at the orphanage. I tried looking into my early records from when I’d first arrived at the orphanage to see if I’d told them anything useful and they’d just dismissed it as toddler ramblings but didn’t really find anything other than I had a weird obsession with bees.”

“Bees?” Roy asked.

“Yeah,” I shrugged. “Apparently I keep asking where ‘Bee’ was. They didn’t know if I wanted bees like the insect or the letter or if that was a nickname for someone. Toddler-me didn’t explain, just keeping asking for Bee.”

“Huh,” Felicity looked intrigued and like she wanted to know more but knew I didn’t want to go further into my past. Talking so much about it had opened some wounds that I didn’t feel like rubbing more salt in, at least not tonight. “I’ll just make up some background info and you can memorize it later. Birthdate: November 19th 1995. Name: Eliza Rose…Wait we should get you different last name. What if there’s an alternate universe version of you? We can’t risk you crossing paths and messing with timey-wimey things.”

I smiled at the Doctor Who reference and said, “We’ll I’m not very attached to my last name, it was just the name of the first foster mom that took me in but I was only there for a week before they switched me and I don’t remember her at all. What do you suggest for a new one?”

Felicity thought about it before making a suggestion. “What if you just use my last name? You could be Eliza Rose Smoak. Then you can stay with me and we’ll tell everyone you’re my cousin.”

“Seriously?” I asked, kind of shocked. “You want me to stay with you? And Want everyone thinking we’re related?”

“Why?” she seemed kind of embarrassed. “Do you not want to be associated with me like that?”

“No! It’s not like that at all, it’s just…” I was trying to explain the gratitude I felt without choking up. “No one’s ever done anything like that for me. I’ve spent my whole life bouncing around from different foster families because none of them wanted me and you’ve just met me today and want me to…” I stopped and tried my best to stop the tears I felt from flowing. What was with me today? It was like all day I’d felt each emotion tenfold. Was it this place? These people? Or a stress from the day’s events? 

“Eliza, listen to me,” Felicity spoke very comfortingly. “We don’t know how or why yet, but we’re connected somehow. All of us,” she gestured to Roy, Caitlin and Cisco, “are connected in this mess and we need to stick together. So at least for now, you’re one of us.”


End file.
